The three acts of Deadlight cater to three different tastes. One is for the people who love rainy film noir, the other is for fans of hardcore platformers, the third one feels like a summer blockbuster. It's a pity that Deadlight is too short to satisfy the appetites of even one of these groups.

In theory, every new idea introduced in Hitman: Absolution is a good one and, technically, should make a Hitman game more enjoyable. But the reality is that when combined, Absolution's overbearing story, "Instinct", over-reliance on scripted events and a weird checkpoint system take a lot of fun away.

Natural Selection 2 has quite a few things to be nitpicky about. Pared down strategy elements, scanty arsenal of weapons, lack of single-player missions and decent tutorials – yep, it's all there, but, in contrast to shooters that come off big assembly lines, the developers put love and effort into making of this game.

Harvey's New Eyes is ridiculously easy to beat, but fun, not quite beautiful, but very stylish, never gets boring, but goes out with a whimper.

Chivalry is, hands down, the best online slasher set in the Middle Ages out there right now.

Dishonored rarely challenges the players, but it doesn't take them for fools, either, so that's an achievement compared to other games in the genre. Just don't expect strokes of genius like the Shalebridge Cradle level from Thief: Deadly Shadows.

FIFA 13 offers good arcade-style football, and its multiplayer is next to exemplary. But it needs to grow up if it wants to become a simulator.

A well-made platformer with a nice pedigree, albeit too short.

For every flaw of XCOM, there is a dozen virtues.

Halo 4 may be utterly derivative, but it is the best Halo so far.

Unlike its rogue-like brethren, FTL is not a game that you'll be enjoying for hundreds of hours, but still, saving The Federation is a lot of fun for a first few times.

Torchlight 2 is a very player-friendly action/RPG. It could have gotten a better score if not for its truncated Act IV.

Those who still crave for more of the same gameplay from AGEod, will enjoy this interactive panorama of the Roman Empire.

Shad'O is a beautiful story of overcoming one's fears wrapped in a TD-style gameplay.

A few nitpicks aside, Armored Kill is the best Battlefield 3 expansion so far.

This episode delivers excellent drama at the cost of killing the non-linear storytelling.

Is it possible to tell a deep, touching story about a bunch of emo teens? Yes, and the 30-hour campaign of The World Ends with You is the proof.

This is an honest DLC – 4-5 hours of joy for 10 bucks guaranteed!

My first impression after completing Leviathan was, "Too bad this did not make it into the core game!" In the perfect world, this DLC would have been available for free, just like Extended Cut.

Darksiders 2 managed to rise above the original game by fixing broken gameplay elements and adding good new ones.

Mutant Blobs Attack is just as enjoyable as its console predecessor, the PS3-exclusive Tales from Space: About a Blob. Absent cooperative multiplayer aside, the game is still amazing.

Global Offensive is a decent modern online shooter as far as convenience goes, but in terms of content, it's Counter-Strike v1.6 with slight improvements.

Deponia is a refined adventure game – beautifully drawn, creative, incredibly funny and so close to the classic definition of the genre that it takes your breath away.

It's not easy to create a worthy sequel to a great game, but Robot Entertainment managed to go around the now-familiar gameplay formula by adding new ways to develop the characters and a very addictive coop mode.

The drama is well-directed, but as soon as The Walking Dead tries to straighten its shoulders, it immediately runs into technical issues, like stiff animation, poor facial gestures, and the lack of ambient sounds.

Dark atmosphere, unprecedented drama for an App Store game, amazing finale. Finally, the iOS platform has discovered its own thatgamecompany.

If not for its poor technical execution, Game of Thrones would have taken its rightful place in the 80+ range.

In my mind, I do understand that Endless Space is not without its flaws. But the mere sight of such a coherent space strategy game is mesmerizing.

A short campaign is the only downside of this otherwise amazing platformer.

The already excellent Crusader Kings 2 just got a second wind – now with a spicy Middle-Eastern flavor!

Duels is the still the best gateway drug to collectable card games out there.

Despite its modest amount of improvements, Gods & Kings is an excellent reason to come back to Civilization 5.

There is a guy with a gun, and he is going to punish anyone who stands in his way, be it corrupt politicians, New Jersey gangsters or rotten cops of Sao Paolo. Max Payne 3 is basically gun porn with a semblance of a dramatic story. It looks and plays like a Hollywood blockbuster, though.

A well-written story could have transformed Rayman Origins into a beautiful fairytale. Without it, it's an incredibly fun ride and a great party game.

Swordigo is a prehistoric platformer without a single new idea; a hardcore journey through dark fairytale worlds, and a bow to arcade hits of the 90s.

A solid expansion pack, although it is not as game-changing as Victoria: Revolutions was.

So far, Cubemen is the best "tower defense" of 2012.

Stacking is a great "sandbox" game for kids and adults alike. It tests your patience rather than wit, though, and after defeating The Baron, there is no reason to come back to it.

Get hooked up on Legend of Grimrock, and it will not let you go until the end.

Warp is a unique example of a stealth-based arcade game.

A simple, yet very endearing game. If Botanicula were a living creature, you'd want to hold it in your arms and pet it around the neck. What a cutie! If only it were a wee bit smarter.

Don't trust the bad first impression. Napoleonic Wars is not a re-skinned version of Mount & Blade, but a self-contained game. Give it a chance, if you're interested in the 19th century history.

Binary Domain has its share of weird concepts and one-dimensional characters, but they're better than "let's kill some terrorists who stole nuclear warheads".

Wargame is definitely not a masterpiece, but for is Eugen Systems it is the first game with such a high level of quality.

Finishing a trilogy is always difficult. Tying off dozens of story threads which had been woven by players into many different tapestries is a daunting task. Mass Effect 3 is the first game that succeeded at this colossal undertaking.

It is so nice to finally stumble upon a game with a well-written, well-presented story, even though To the Moon is more an animated movie than a videogame.

Bend Studio brought not only Uncharted's familiar gameplay mechanics, but also its rich atmosphere to Vita's 5-inch screen.

Fall of the Samurai is what every expansion pack should be. There is nothing that will make you gasp with awe, but every one of the new features fits the game perfectly. Evolution at its finest.

Ghost Trick is a story about loneliness that leads to unnecessary aggression and stirs the appetite for revenge. It's a touching tale of kindness, loyalty, and redemption. Only after experiencing a shocking number of secrets at the very end, you will realize how many metaphors are hidden within this game. And it's enough to forgive Ghost Trick for its stringent linearity, unskippable cutscenes, and a penchant for overly chatty dialogue.

Journey can be a commentary on human life, a story of redemption, a parable on futility of all efforts, or, quite the contrary, perseverance in the face of obstacles – even if you're not into waxing philosophical, you will still discover your own meaning of this three-hour journey.

The best Paradox Interactive game to date. No game has ever explored feudalism so deeply.

It's a pity that thechineseroom opted not to include anything resembling gameplay – an interaction between the player and the creators that is the foundation of an up-and-coming art called "videogames". On the other hand, the story is very touching.

If you like fast-paced combat and weird-looking worlds, and you're already tired of walking about fjords and snowy forests, move on to Kingdoms of Amalur. It's almost the same as Skyrim, give or take a couple of details.

If it weren't for the amazing Real Racing 2, we would have crowned Reckless Racing 2 the best car-based arcade for iOS.

Stylish, challenging, original, and nice to look at.

Trine 2 is amazing from the opening sequence to the melody that plays over the closing credits.

Serious Sam 3 is riddled with flaws, but there is so much flying bacon that you can fill an entire meat plant. It's a decent game that could have been better.

Three of four new maps offer full-scale urban combat that was sorely missing in Battlefield 3. But why this expansion is so sparse on content?

Limbo is a beautiful, intense experience.

2K's NBA is still the best sports simulator out there.

Unity of Command is a looker. Its minimalistic, but stylish visual design is sure to please the fanciful "iPhone generation" of gamers. The map is clean and accurate, and the interface is a picture of user-friendliness. Beyond this delightful façade, there is a wargame that's deep enough for experienced armchair generals and welcoming for newcomers.

This game is not unlike Arkham City – easy to get in, almost impossible to get out.

A rare tower defense game is addictive enough to suck you into playing it for days on end. Orcs Must Die is one of them.

Despite a few questionable ideas, Dungeon Defenders is an entertaining, fresh, vivid (and I mean literally vivid) game. It lacks the ingenious simplicity of Orcs Must Die, but if you prefer to play with friends, then this is what you want.

Multiplayer is the only thing that makes Revelations worth its price (and if you're still interested in the story, just go watch the ending on YouTube).

This game is definitely better than the usual drivel made in the land of bratwurst and Oktoberfest, but being one-eyed in the country of the blind is a dubious honor. The Book of Unwritten Tales is a careful imitation of adventure masterpieces from the days of yore, only, again, without a soul.

You will have to spend dozens of hours to fully explore Skyrim. Like any other Bethesda game, it has its share of imperfections and broken promises, but it's exciting and fascinating nevertheless. Wait for a couple of patches to come out, download the best mods, tighten the screws in the SkyrimPrefs.ini file, and you're good to go for a virtual Christmas vacation.

Programmers, designers and other people at Sports Interactive worked even harder than last year, and improved the game with several great features.

The execution is flawless as usual. Backgrounds, animation, lighting, music, sound, visual effects are breathtaking, well-directed cinematics are peppered with snarky dialogue. It's a bona-fide Hollywood blockbuster.

Battlefield 3 is the most spectacular shooter of this fall, and I doubt that anyone will come even close.

All in all, Heroes 6 is a game worthy of its legendary name.

Rise of the Samurai is a great excuse to return to Medieval Japan.

The best racing blockbuster on PC since Burnout Paradise.

The only serious drawback of this DLC is that you cannot change the outcome of its story.

Online multiplayer is FIFA 12's saving grace. Without it, it's a reasonably good game with fair graphics, deep defense system and a promising, albeit somewhat unnatural, player impact mechanics. With multiplayer, it's the best soccer game in quite some time.

Gears of War 3 is a bit thin in the story department, but it's a great shooter nonetheless.

Even if its multiplayer is a bit generic and bland, Resistance 3 is hands down the best game in the trilogy.

If you're interested in The Russian Civil War, pick up Revolution Under Siege. Being an AGEod game, RUS has its share of annoying bugs, but no other title is dedicated to Russia's biggest national tragedy of the 20th century.

Even the "New Game Plus" mode with its full arsenal of potions and gods is not enough to quench the Bastion thirst. Oh, how I wish it had randomly-generated maps, an expansive loot system, RPG stats, and dozens of quests... But that would have been a completely different game. Bastion, first and foremost, is a beautiful story with a beginning, a climax and ending(s). "A proper story", as the old man Rucks would say.

Human Revolution is not a perfect game, but its atmosphere, the intoxicating feeling of freedom, and a tightly-wound story make it as close to the original Deus Ex as possible. We couldn't have asked for more.

If you have never played Panzer General, this almost carbon copy of SSI's masterpiece may easily blow your mind.

This DLC is good enough to warrant its $10 price tag and two hours of your time. But it could have been better.

Alice: Madness Returns is a living contradiction, an unholy union of incredible visual flair and ho-hum gameplay.

Stainless Games simply retooled the 2009 version in accordance with the latest edition of the original CCG - Magic 2012. Even with all the changes, this game is basically a big glorified DLC, but, on the other hand, it costs only $10, and offers a lot of fun for this kind of money.

It's a pity that Hamilton's Great Adventure never got its 15 minutes of Internet fame, because it has tons of charm and it's very fun to play.

After having created the toughest armor deep down in Hell, you will realize that you've seen and done everything that Terraria has to offer. But it'll take you about 30 hours to get to that point, plus, free expansions are already on their way.

Instead of cloning Puzzle Quest, Capybara Games took the concept and elevated it to a new level.

Instead of cloning Puzzle Quest, Capybara Games took the concept and elevated it to a new level.

For a game that was made without financial infusions from top-tier publishers, The Witcher 2 looks much, much better than all recent role-playing blockbusters combined.

The Next Big Thing is an ode to classic Hollywood horror movies.

MLB 2K11 has plenty of nifty concepts, it is reasonably complex, and has a solid look, but it wouldn't hurt to inject a few fresh ideas into the old formula.

Even though it is clearly still a work in progress, Shogun 2 is a beautiful, deep, incredibly stylish, enthralling game.

Shift 2 is Need for Speed: Shift with some welcome upgrades and old issues. The overall experience is not as fresh and intense second time around, but multiplayer races are a blast if you play with friends.

GLaDOS sang it best back in 2007: "I'm making a note here: HUGE SUCCESS. It's hard to overstate my satisfaction". Huge success indeed.

The only drawback of Darkest Hour is that it has only two starting points – 1914 and 1936. If you are completely new to the Hearts of Iron series, this is game you need.

Lost Horizon is like a good summer blockbuster. Analyze it under the microscope, and you will see a myriad of small flaws, but the action is explosive and gripping until the very end.

Severed is not bad for a $6 DLC, but I can't shake the feeling that this (severed) piece is just to whet our appetite for bigger things to come.

Severed is not bad for a $6 DLC, but I can't shake the feeling that this (severed) piece is just to whet our appetite for bigger things to come.